Last Days Seattle Trip

Before I left, I got to see 5 month old, Ada.  This is Joshua and Vanessa's little girl.  She is absolutely adorable.  

Although Ada preferred me, Carly got a chance to hold her as well.  This is mostly because I am a very sharing individual and didn't want Carly's feelings to get hurt.  Ada immediately cried when she held her however.  In all seriousness, Carly looks like a natural mom.

On my last day, my flight was delayed so I took the opportunity to visit two other favorites of mine.  The first is the Elliot Bay Bookstore.  

The second is Caffe Umbria in Occidental Square.  This is as near to an Italian Caffe as you can get in Seattle.  It is by far my favorite coffee place downtown.  It also holds a special place in my heart because it was here, on March 31, before Opening Day of Mariners baseball that I read an article informing me Yankee Stadium would be torn down later that year.  Whatever reservations I had until then, that article pushed me over the edge and I decided to move to NY.

While all this was in my mind, we spotted a car with NY plates.  Some signs are hard to miss.  It was about time for me to be heading back to the city that never sleeps. 

Family, Friends, and "F"oto Shoots

My family and I went to Pike Place Market, the staple of Seattle.  (Anyone thinking of the Space Needle should be reminded it is an eye sore and completely useless.)  We walked around, visited my friend in a small, independent book store and ended up at Pike Place Brewery for lunch.  

Pictured below, the family outside the aforementioned bookstore.  If you get a chance to go, do.  It is below the infamous fish market and a man of central asian descent will tell you just about anything you need to know and will do so with a smile and a story.

Later, I got to go to dinner at Stumbling Goat in Phinny Ridge.  And naturally Wenarto threw a "wine tasting" party.  Below is Stephen and I.

Finally, Wenarto took the opportunity to take a 5 picture photoshoot.  Spontaneous of course.  Here is one of the 5.

The Immortal W

Following the wedding, Wenarto and I went to a film screening and art show at Evo, which is our friend's ski and snowboard shop in Fremont (evogear.com).  Pictured above, Wenarto becoming "part of the art."  

The art behind me is from an artist who did the work for K2.  There are some amazing things being done with art on skis and snowboards as well as fascinating photography.  I am borrowing my friend, Tre's, hat and glasses.  Tre is a photographer and works for Evo.  For Tre's work go to evogear.com/crew.aspx?crew=tdauenhauer

Wuv, Twu Wuv & Mauwug

If you want to get the good pictures, sometimes you have to go where you just aren't allowed. Hence the "what do you think you are doing back here?" position of the bride, Monique.  I met Monique in law school and she has been one of my dearest friends.  After spending some time with her now husband, Nick, I found yet another example of a couple whom I think has got all the right pieces.  So the main event of my trip to Seattle was a complete success. 

In this picture: Joshua Curtis (right), Nick the groom, myself exemplifying all that is the "west side," and Monique the bride. 

The first dance of the bride and groom complete with a twirl.  

A father's proudest moment.  The dance was not nearly as fluid as that of the bride and groom (believe me they have had enough practice) but was full of love.  

The wedding was a great reminder of what is important in life.  I got to see many of my law school friends, most of whom I have gotten very close and will remain in contact with no matter where I am.  It was also a night of celebration, just what a wedding should be.  To the future...

Goin to a Town...

Rain.  As you can see in the forecast.  Rain and 56 degrees.  Welcome to Seattle ;-)  But at least I have good coffee. 

Friday morning I started with my favorite coffee shop on Capitol Hill.  Bauhaus.  Great place and a must visit if you are in the area.  Try the green tea bread but not on Mondays!  They won't have it.   

Then while walking downtown to meet Carly for lunch, I decided to get artsy and take a pic of Seattle in the background, Freeway "Park," and my cup of coffee.  Watch out!

Finally- I took a pic of Nordstrom which is where we had lunch, Carly's favorite.  Day one was a great start visiting my favorite places and seeing my favorite people.  Next up, the Wedding. 

Leaving on a Jet Plane...

I packed my things and was headed to JFK airport when I noticed a really cool sticker by my apartment.  This fool had parked in a no parking zone and because of his inconsiderate parking, the street was unable to be cleaned.  So don't call the city whining.  Call this guy.  

This is the metro entrance I take to catch the B train.  Notice it is a nice sunny day when I left Brooklyn.  What will Seattle hold in store for me?

  

Getting Ready to Visit Seattle

I am about to  leave for the airport for a 8:50 p.m. departure for Seattle.  I have a wedding to attend tomorrow for my good friends Monique and Nick.  I am excited, though fighting a little cold, and ready to embark on my first public transit adventure to JFK.  

Naturally, the rainy city will be providing me with some rain.  Amazing.  But it also provides me with some time with family and friends as well as grabbing a real cup of coffee and eating legitimately fresh seafood.  All of these things I am looking forward to.  

So I bid New York farewell for now as I visit Seattle for the first time as simply a visitor.  To be sure, I will have stories and pictures when I return next Tuesday.  Til then. 

Pre- New York: Green DC'er

Before I came to New York from Seattle, I had a chance to spend some time in Washington D.C.  A friend of mine and I went on Memorial Day, unaware at the time, and saw the monuments, the WWII memorial, and walked around a bit.  

Below is at the Lincoln Memorial.  He is big.

Later we went to Georgetown, saw all the embassies and eventually ended up on a busy street for shoppers and eaters.  Below is just down from that street.

Finally, I got a little introduction into what I was to expect in Brooklyn, namely, the streetside townhouses.  I may have to move in to one of these someday.  

"We Don't Do Waves"

  After careful consideration, I decided I would venture out again and attempt to attend the make-up game.  I was having some doubts because I had a lot of studying to do and there was rain in the forecast.  I was a little hesitant about spending the hour commute back and forth simply for a repeat performance of rain outs.  

But this time we had a great success!  One of the best parts of where I was sitting was it seemed like everyone around me was from somewhere other than NY and had come all this way to share the moment.  The picture below was taken by some guys who came up from Atlanta.  In front of me were some people from California and others from Minnesota.  

 It was a great game and the Yankees ended up beating the Devil Rays.  At the end of the game, Frank Sinatra's, New York New York, was playing and the entire stadium was singing along.  

For a baseball fan, this is a dream come true.  And it is baseball heaven.  There are no fair-weather fans here.  When Alex Rodriguez struck out looking with 2 men on base, there were deafening boos.  And when Derek Jeter laid down a sacrifice bunt and also ran out a ground ball, he had no doubt NY loved him.  It's just a place where you know everyone here is a true baseball fan.  

And sorry Seattle fans, but something that has always bugged me is the stupid WAVE.  This should never be performed at a baseball game.  Feel free to get it rolling when the Seahawks play.  I had always thought, and said, that I bet in NY they don't do the wave.  Well- my suspicions were confirmed.  When some fans in the adjacent box seats attempted to start the wave, it was quickly squashed by fans on both flanks.  In fact, their wave made it about 10 feet. To see the action, go to http://gallery.me.com/leggettj1/100111         

So when I was on the subway coming back home, I couldn't help but smile.  It was a dream come true and a goal realized.  I called my dad during the game just so he could at least hear Yankee Stadium.  He MUST come next year for the New Stadium and for an East Coast tour plus Cooperstown.  Til then...

All Washed Up in the Bronx

Friday held an important, arguably the most important, activity of my time here in NY.  The ONLY other event I am dying to witness is the Metropolitan Opera, and let's face it, without Wenarto it won't quite be the same.  But this weekend marked my first trip to Yankee Stadium, the House that Ruth Built.  

On opening day in Seattle, March 31, 2007, I sat in a coffee shop in Occidental square hours before the first game of the Mariners season when I noticed a small headline on page 3 in the sports section of the Seattle Times.  "Historical Yankee Stadium To Be Torn Down."  I had been wavering on my decision to move to the east coast and in that moment, the decision was made. I HAD to get to NY to see a game before this monument to baseball, and really America, was gone forever. 

Getting tickets turned out to be quite difficult.  That night I checked the website and was shocked to see the entire season was already sold out.  Apparently I was behind the game, so to speak.  Upon arriving I asked around, was told by several people they could get me tickets, considered subjecting myself to counterfeit tickets on Craigslist, and finally this last week purchased a seat in the bleachers, home of the infamous Bleacher Creatures.  

As I got off the subway, there was the house of legends.  Babe Ruth was such a huge figure, and public draw, they built a new Stadium just for him.  Along followed Lou Gherig, Yogi Berra, Mickey Mantle, and a score of others and the stadium has boasted historic moments and the sport's best.  I was in sheer awe.   

Then came the bad news.  It was raining.  And it had been raining for the better part of the evening.  Would they call the game?  Would I be reminded of why Seattle had to have a roof? As I sat in the bleachers admiring the ballpark, poncho dripping, I heard the chatter around me telling me this game was not going to be played.  

Finally the announcement came an hour and a half after game time.  The game would be rescheduled for the following evening, the 2nd of a double header.  But in the forecast for tomorrow, Thunderstorms.  It wasn't SUPPOSED to rain Friday until the early hours of Saturday.  But as we all know, Steve Pool teaches "meteorologists" around the country.  So I left that night, a little disappointed, and wondering if I would get to see the Yankees play in their final season at the House that Ruth Built. 

A Cat's Life

Maya has a cold.  She has been sniffling and snotting and coughing.  But she works the night shift steadily ridding us of mice.  

The cat has been an interesting addition to the apartment.  Yael and Marnie seem to crave the cat's affection which usually results in the cat hiding for a spell.  What really gets them is that I rarely pay the cat any attention and yet it consistently bypasses them and flocks to me.  It is a strange occurrence indeed.  

But the most amusing bit regarding the cat is that Yael has never had one nor been around one. She is very unsure about what is appropriate for the cat and what is not.  She is constantly asking questions as to what is proper cat behavior.  "Why does she scratch in the litter box?" "Will she bite me?" "Why doesn't she love me?"  All of this is better than most sitcom television.  

While I maintain an arm's length relationship with the hair shedding creature, it is nice to have a 4th to entertain us.  

Subways

I have about an hour to an hour and a half subway commute to school.  I have been trying different lines and think I found the best route for me.  It involves a couple of transfers and a bus but it works out pretty well.  

I came out of one station in Park Slope to find a long alley leading to the exit and then walking by Grand Army Plaza got lucky with two pretty cool photos. 

For the most part, I love the subway.  With an unlimited monthly pass, I feel like I can go anywhere.  It's a great system.  Which brings me to my New York moment that left me feeling a lot less green.  I was taking a train back from school during rush hour and it was packed.  A woman had a bit of a freak out and started yelling, "I can't take this.  I can't be sandwiched like this."  She moved to the middle of the train, which was an even tighter fit and I couldn't help thinking, "why are you on the subway then?"  

That's when it hit me.  I am used to the close quarters and what many would consider sheer madness.  There was an old guy behind me, using me as a support and a guy reading the paper in front of me.  I had no personal space but it didn't bother me one bit.  

With so many people and so little space, I am getting used to being close.  It's kind of great though.  Everyone going through the daily grind together.  

Tropical Storm Hannah and Hurricane Maya

As we braced for Tropical Storm Hannah, I spent the early hours of the day buying canned foods, emergency supplies, and boarding the windows...ok well I didn't do any of that but I did wait in anticipation.  The result?  Disappointment. 

The picture below was taken on Saturday night from my roof at around 10 pm in the eye of the storm.  What ended up happening was some rain and an occasional gust of wind that made Seattle Inaugural Day storms look like category 5 demons.  Essentially, the word tropical and storm should be taken out of future Hannah's and her offspring. 

The second picture is from this evening revealing no damage and a nice sunset, leaving little memory of the terror of a storm that hit just moments before.  Today when I ventured out into the remains of TSH I came across a little girl selling lemonade and some of her old educational books from the year before.  Next to her laid a cardboard sign labeled, "Stoop Sale."  I love Brooklyn.  

So I asked her what the going rate was for a cup of lemonade and she said 10 cents with a bit of an embarrassed look, she couldn't have been older than 10.  I then told her I would give her a dollar if she had whipped it up herself.  She said she had and I began a short economics lecture informing her that in order to make a profit she was going to need to raise the price.  After walking away I realized her advertising campaign was sheer brilliance.  How many other walkers by had she sheepishly told the meager dime price to just to get a larger donation?  I then felt as though she could have given me the lecture.  But the experience added a kick to my step just knowing that here in the urban setting of Brooklyn were the old days of lemonade stands run by future business leaders.  She had also informed me that she had read all of the 20 plus books strewn about on towels on the sidewalk.  Keep up the studies young one. 

 

Finally this weekend included a pleasant but smelly surprise.  While we were distracted by the wind and rain outside, Hurricane Maya had hit us unaware.  After tracing the stench behind the tv stand in the living room, two bodies were in the slow process of decomposing.  The victims, Mat and his friend, were apparently no match for the wits of our Bronx breed hunter.  Below are the makeshift graves I had to quickly put together to remove the corpses and quell the girlish screams that began on the living room couch and echoed behind the closed doors of two bedrooms.  When the cowardly housemates reemerged from their safe harbors, I was commended with a  "thank God we have a man in the house," and quizzed with "was this the grossest thing I had ever done."  Sadly, no.  

I'm in a New York State of Mind

One of the great things about living in New York is a complete overload of entertainment possibilities.  In one week, I was able to see Jazz/R&B singer Amel Larreiux and author Brad Meltzer.   

The above picture was taken from our table.  

I also got the opportunity to meet a lawyer turned author and do a little something for my mother in the process.  Brad Meltzer graduated from Columbia Law School and then instead of being a lawyer, he decided to be a writer.  His choice has lead him down a road of both success and happiness.  He is also a wonderful person.  My mother had turned me on to his books some time ago but she was REALLY the fan.  I subscribe to a newsletter that informs me of free events in the city including concerts, book readings, and lectures, among other things.  

I learned that Meltzer, from Brooklyn, would be starting his book tour in NY and had the fortune of being able to go.  After the reading, Mr. Meltzer graciously signed books.  The room was packed and he maintained a fantastic attitude the entire time.  I had filled out a card that simply said, "Shannon" on it.  When I handed him the book, he shook my hand and introduced himself.  I replied, "I'm Jason," and he asked who Shannon was.  I told him that my Mom was really the big fan and that I would be sending the book back to Seattle.  

He scribed a personalized comment, signed, and asked me what I was doing in NY.  I told him I was in law school and he asked what I was going to specialize in, a term only lawyers seem to use in this line of questioning.  I firmly said "not law," and he smiled and said, "Good, that was the greatest decision I had ever made."  It's just so nice to meet someone who followed their dreams and wasn't deterred by traditional expectations.  I am meeting more and more people like that in NY.  

The Case of the Mouse Hunter

Meet Maya.  She is a 9 month old stray who was adopted by Marnie on Tuesday.  So why on Earth would anyone adopt a cat in NYC?  Well, I wish I could say it was for altruistic reasons but we had a practical need.  You see, Mat decided to bring a friend into our apartment.  So I figured if Mat can go and get outside rodent help, we would not be breaking the rules if we got outside feline help.  So Maya was "hired" for one purpose: keep our apartment mouse free.  

As the political pundits ask, "what qualifies Gov. Palin to be the Vice President," I figure you are just as curious to know what qualifies Maya for this epic battle in which yours truly has failed twice now.  Well, in short, she is from the mean streets of the Bronx.  So in the hierarchy of toughness, Mat and his little friend are NO match for Bronx Maya!  

And right we were.  After being in the apartment for less than 12 hours, she had bagged her first kill.  Well, not exactly a kill.  She did a little catch and release action.  Who knows where she spent those hard, long 9 months in the Bronx?  Maybe she has a murder conviction under her belt already.  So the street life has taught her to be tough, but to always issue a warning first. And it has worked.  There has been NO sign of Mat or his compatriot.  

Maya has also brought a little sense of calmness to the apartment.  She is remarkably well behaved.  She is not skiddish at all.  And even though I have really only shown disinterest in her, for some reason, she seems to prefer me, to the discontent of Marnie and Yael.  I am sure that will pass.  

I am currently working on installments two and three of the epic battle against Mat the mouse and will let you know when they are up on youtube.    

A Moving Weekend

This last weekend, I helped my housemate, Marnie, move her remaining things from her old apartment on the upper west side (think Madonna).   She is featured in the first picture attempting to turn the revolving cube.  After some effort, she was successful.  This is at Union Square.  We took a trip to the "local" K-Mart to pick up some household essentials.  I also took the opportunity to grab a couple of plants to GREEN up my room.  

K-Mart is in the middle of the city (lower east side) and as you can imagine, it was packed.Luckily we found a parking spot and were on our way.  Before the K Marche stop, we had spent a few hours lugging her stuff down a flight of stairs and into a moving van.  After reviewing her leftovers I could see the importance of keeping over 20 cook books.  Particularly with the internet still widely hidden from most Americans.  She also had some kitchen things including a fondue set, every dry herb you could imagine (please question freshness here) and a wide variety of baking supplies.  Did I mention our oven in not functioning...well aside from it's use of housing our pots and pans.  

We stopped by the Housing Works thrift store (I will dedicate a blog to Housing Works in conjunction with my plans at a later point) and grabbed a slice of delicious pizza.  I am still holding out for Chicago until I make a judgment. 

We then stopped and picked up my new computer.  Now it isn't pretty or new but it was a heck of a find for an outstanding price.  Along with the computer, I also found a desk on the street near my apartment (pictured) below.   

    

 We ended the evening at a local restaurant, "Beast",  which was delicious and very well priced.  She bought in consideration of my trekking up 4 flights of stairs with the "book boxes."  If you need to know how to move in NYC on a budget, I am your man, now having done it twice.  I was also able to help my other housemate get her ipod up and running and attempted to move her beyond the use of the 3 1/2 Floppy Disk and starting using her ipod storage.  But after discovery she had a slight technology phobia, I am now in charge of maintaining her ipod music so we will focus on one thing at a time.  

This weekend also included round two of the mouse trap.  After altering the trap, the mouse still was able to defeat me.  So the tally is Mat the Mouse 2 and Jason the Human 0.  To watch the first of three installments in the epic battle, please go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWUX5ovRNPc

As the Green New Yorker, I embrace the reality of living with mice and cockroaches and accept the challenge of dealing with them in a human and environmentally friendly way.  Well- maybe not humane with the roaches.